Machine for making sheets and boards



. April 2 c. A. uPsbu I MACi'iINE FOR MAKING SHEETS AND BOARDS I Fil ed Oct; 15, 1926 5 snet -sheet 1 April 2, 1929. I c, ps'ou 1,707,375

I I ACHINE SOB KING SHEETS AND- BOARDS Filed Oct l5, 192s KSheetS-Sheet '2 \LSA'RYS April 2, 1929.

4c, A. UPSON MACHINE FOR MAKING SHEETS AND BoAmJS Filed Oct. 15, 41926 asneets-sheet IHVENTOR.

.ZDSom RN Y5 ril 2,1929. c. A. uPso 1,707,375

MAHINE FOR MAKING SHEETS AND BOARDS FiIOd OCt. 15, 1926 5 sheets-Sheet 4 i o '15 J3 i0 1 J o 13 0 0 0 I Z7 g6 35 ii l O Q o April 2, 1929.

C. A. UPSON MACHINE FOR MAKING SHEETS AND BOARDS Filed Oct. 15, 1926 s Shets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR Zasfl. Z/fJSO/l.

1'5 ATEORZEYS ma at. 2, 1929.

UNITED STATES I 1,707,375] PATENT OFFICE.

, cnmns A. m'son, or 1.0mm, m YORK, ASSIGNOR T 'rnn arson comm, or aocnnsrna, mew YORK, A coaroaarron or NE YORK.

ncnnm non maxnw snnn'rs AND roams.

Appl'ication'filed'october 15, 1928. Serial No. 141,881.

My present invention relates to machines for moulding or forming articles or com-' pounds from plastics, andmore particularly tomachines for making wall board, artificial.

lumber or products of thisv general nature from paper stock, such as wood fibre or-from plastic -materials generally used with. or in substitution for pa er fibre, and my-invention has-for its oblect to provide a simple,

v eflicient and durab e machine of this, character.' The improvements are'directe'd particularly to means for so agitatin and mixing the material that is fed into t e machine as to cause it to ,bepresented to the actual forming mechanism as a thoroughly homo-- geneous mass.

To these and other ends the invention resides in certain improvements and combination of parts, all as will be hereinafter more fully described, the novel .features being pointed out in the claims at the end of the specification. In the drawings: i

' Fig, 1 is aside elevation of a board form ing machine constructed in accordance with;

and illustrating one embodiment of my in-. vention;

Fig. 2 is a rear end view of the said, ma-' '40 one of the beaters that I employ; v

7 is a view similar to Fig. 5 showlng the n anner inwhi'chthe material progresses at the receiving end of the machine; and

' Fig: 8 is a view on a smaller scale showing the manner in 'which .the mater al is Jcompressed and issues from-the machine as a finished product, the. same. being in longitudinal section in a plane indicated generally in the, line 8-'-8 of Fig. 2.

Similar reference numerals throughout the several views indicate thesame parts.

The} present machine may be .used for forming solid products such as heavypaper,

wall hoard orthe so called artificial lumber fj from plastic materials of dilferent these ends I have mechanism:

kinds. The present machine has been deslgned for the particular purpose of forming heavy fibreboard' or artificial lumber from paper pulp, that is vegetable fibres suspended 1n and mixed with water. The .60 general .ldea-of the machine is that the fibres, 1nthe plastic state, are fed in under pressure between converging,- travelling sur faces, so that an excessof water or molsture 1s gradually squeezed out and the board or 65 other product. emerges from the deliverv end. of the machine in a'solid state though later dried or otherwise treated.

Inasmuch as the material as fed into the machine (being in the present case a suitable paper stock) is partly solid and partly liq= u 1d 1t s lmportant thata thorough a 'tation should occur'before thepurely meci anlcal means come into action to compress the fibres and express the excess of water from the plastic, semi-plastic or'liquid pulp. To

provided the following Referring first to Figures 7 and 8, I pro vlde a pan of travellmg, converging, fiat com resslon surfaces A and B. These are -pre erably composed of a number of articulated er ora'ted plates 1 pivoted together at,

2 an suitably supported in guides (not shown) so as to con ointly provide the two plain converging surfaces previously mentioned. These plates arein the nature of continuous chains or conveyors, the lower set B travelling over sprockets 3 on shafts I 4 and the upper set travelling over sprockets 5 on shaft 6. The pairs of shafts ,and

sprockets 3-4 and 5-6 are adjustable to-f ward and from eachother in a manner that has nothingvto do with the presentinvention but which involves a screw indicated generally at 7 (Fig; 1) attached to the two frames 8 and 9wh1ch respectively carry the bearing of the two setsof shafts 4 and 6, The articulated 'membersor compressers as they may be called travel conjomtly in a direction indicated by the arrows in,Figures 7 and 8 and material .fed between them is gradually compressed as indicated by-the convergence of the members so that the bulk admitted at the feed end of the machine emerges from. the' opposite end in a solid state. Assuming, as in the present instance, that such material is woodfibremixed with water; such mixture enters the machine from a suitable source at 1U! (Figures 1 and '2"). There is there provided a throat 11 that embodies a box diverging from the supply pipe 10. At the forward end of this box is a chamber 12 through which the material passes just before it goes between the articulated surfaces AB. A pair of shafts 13 and'ld are extended through this chamber in spaced relationship and each one carries a. plurality of heaters or blades 15, those on one shaft being arranged to pass between those on the other shaft when the two shafts are simultaneously driven as best shown in Figure 1. ll prefer to make the heaters or the blades 15 of the form shown in Figure 4; although they may be angularly disposed as illustrated-in Figure 6.

The shafts 13 and 1d are driven preferably at a relatively high speed for which purpose an independent motor 16 is provided. as shown in Figure 2. The motor for driving the machine in general is shown at 17 in the same figure. A belt 18 from the shaft of the motor 16 through pulleys 19 and 20, drives a shaft 21 provided with pulleys 22 from which belts 2% drive shafts 13 and 14 by means of pulleys 2i attached to them, said shafts being thus driven so that the cooperating blades 15 travel in opposite directions,

The course of the material from the throat '11 and into the beater chamber 12 and thence on into the compression chamber AB is through a passage indicated at 25 and best shown in Figures 5 and Z.

Inasmuch as the surfaces lh-B formed by the articulated members 1 are travelling on approaching curves as they come oil the rear sproclrets 3 and 5 it is necessary to provide a self adapting means for. directing the tlow of material from the throat 11, heating chamber 12, and passage 25 into the com- "pression chamber. To this end ll provide at the end of the bottom wall 26 of the pars stitutes the upper wall of the passage 25.

The plate 29 pivots on ashait 30 which shaft (Figures 5 and 7) is provided with arms 31 fitted w'ithweights 32. The. function of the shaft, weights, and arms is to form a liquidtightcontact at the" top of the passage 25 with the travelling element A. Between the two of them, the contact members' 27 and 28 serve. to guide the plastic, liquid or semi-liquid material between the moving, compression elements A-B. When adjustments are made between the shafts f1: and 6 at the rear end of'the machine regulate the thickness of the product, floating element 28 weighted on its pivot adapts itself to a proper contact to tightly maintain the passageway 25 intothe compression chamber.

Preferably aprons 33 are provided 011 the surfaces of the members All of the compression chamber which aprons are composed of wire gauze or other suitable material adapted to give the product a proper surface by their contactand yet to allow water to flbw therethr'ough in which connection it is to be noted that the articulated elements 1 of the compression members A-B are so constructed as to permit the liquid contents of the material that is fed into the machine to flow out as the solid content. is trapped and compressed between members to ultimately emerge in the solid form indicated at G in Figure 8. w

The general operation of the machine is as iollows, the fact being borne in mind that it has been described in this particular embodiment as a machine for forming a paper product from vegetable fibres suspended in water:

The water, carrying the fibres in suspension, is introduced under suitable pressure through the feed pipe 10-. lit travels through the throat l1 and reaches the chamher 12. By this time, whatever its preparation the fibres or solid matter are apt to be- 4 come coagnlated or to have assumeda condi tion in which they are improperly mixed. Coming in contact with the heaters 15, in the chamber 12 they are, however, at this point thoroughly agitated and mixed just before they enter the passage 25 and pass to the compression-chamber A-B. As before stated, the heaters 15 on their shafts 13 and 1 1 are independently driven Erom the motor 16 and can be given that degree of speed which is necessary to produce the results on the product as it passes to the critical point of the passage way 25 and is about to enter the compression or forming chamber.

in a machine of the character described a variety of materials may be used and op-.

erated upon although, as before stated, l have described it in this instance with particular reference to theiormation of wall board, artificial lumber or similar material from paper stock, that is, wood or vegetable fibres suspended in water. An important feature of the machine; whatevpr the material, is the agitation of the combined solid and liquid substances immediately before 7 they pass into a chamber in which the liquid is expressed and the. solid matter is progressively compressed as a solid, self susta' body.

I claim as my'invention;

1. In a machine iorforming solid products from plasticimaterials, the combination with a compression chamber, of a. feeding throat,

and means interposed betwcen the feeding to ultimately emerge throat and compression chamber for violently agitating and mixing the material during its passage from one to the other.

2. In a machine for forming solid products from plastic materials, the combination with a compression chamber, of a feeding throat, and av rotary beater int-erposcd'between said elements to violently act upon the material as it passes from the feeding throat into the compression chamber.

3. In a machme for forming SOlld prod- V ucts from plastic materials, the combination with a compression chamber, comprising a pair of travelling, converging elements, of

a feeding throat, means for supplyingthe current of material from said throat into the compression chamber, and an agitating de-- vice located intermediately ofthe throat and compression chamber for violently agitating and mixing a supply of materialjust before it enters the compression chamber.

4. In a machine for forming solid products from plastic materials, the combination with ,trance into the compression cham r.

a compression chamber adapted to drain the liquid contentlof the material, of a feeding throat through-which -the material is introduced to such compression chamber, and an agitating chamber interposed between the throat and the compression chamber, and a beater arranged in such agitating chamber to violently agitate and mix the materials introduced immediately preceding, its en- 5. Ina machine of the characterdescribed -the combination with a pair-of travellin elements constituting a converging pair 0% walls-in a-compression chamber, of means for feedinga combination of solid and liquid l matter through said chamber, and means arranged immediately adjacent'tosaid com pression chamber for violently agitating and mixin the supply of material immediately prece mg its entrance into the compression chamber.

6. In a machine of the character described, the combination with a'pair of travelling elements constituting a converging pair of walls in a compression chamber, of means for feeding a combination of solid and liquid matter through said chamber, means arranged immediately adjacent to said compression chamber for violently agitating and mixing the supply of material immediately preceding its entrance into the compression chamber, means for driving the travelling elements and independent means for driving the agitating means at high speed.

7. In a machine for forming solid prod-'- tween it andtheagitating chamber adaptedto ride upon the-endless elementsas they pass over the rolls and render the pressure chamber substantially water tight at these pointsi 4 a orson- 

